ELLIS Island is located at the mouth
of the Hudson River in in Upper New York Bay,
southwest of the southern tip of ManhattanIsland.It is usually reached by the Statue of
Liberty/Ellis Island Ferry from the south tip of ManhattanIsland at the Castle Clinton ferry
landing, or from Liberty State Park,
New Jersey.It is one mile southwest of the southern tip
of Manhattan and a quarter mile east of Liberty State Park, New
Jersey.In
1998, the US Supreme Court split sovereignty of the physical “location” of the
island between New Jersey (22.5 acres) and New York (5 acres).As I had included Ellis Island in my New York ghost town
listings way before that time, I am continuing to do so, even though that has
now changed. (SEE the Save Ellis Island’s website
for additional details and a map of the division.)I am also adding it to my New Jersey listings, so this is the first
major bi-state site in my files.

Ellis Island was an extremely busy,
self contained island community that served as one of the busiest immigration
stations in the country.It was NOT the
only one, just the main one for European immigrants from 1892-1954.

On
April 11, 1890, the island was designated an official immigration station, and
on January 1, 1892, it opened.Over the
next 62 years, Ellis Island was the gateway to the United States for over 50% of all
immigrants.

On
June 14, 1897, the building complex burned, and the island was closed until
December 17, 1990, when it reopened.In
1924, mass migrations to the US
ended, and Ellis Island was used as a
deportation center as well as immigration center, although on a much smaller
scale than the 1900‑1924 era.

During
the 1917‑1919 and 1941‑1954 periods it was also used as a detention
center for suspected enemy aliens.Finally on November 29, 1954, the old station closed its doors, after
admitting over 12,000,000 immigrants to American shores.In 1965, the island complex was given to the
National Park Service and it was added to the Statue of Liberty National
Monument, and in 1976 opened to the public for visits.

The
island was closed again in 1984 for a $156 million renovation and restoration
project.On September 10, 1990 the ImmigrationCenter reopened, consisting of museums,
exhibits and interpretive displays.There are 30 buildings in the complex still awaiting restoration, most
on the south island.The latest to open
is the old FerryBuilding in April, 2007.There is an organization called SAVE ELLIS ISLAND
that is making an attempt to save and restore this Nationally
important historic site.

If your ancestors came
through Ellis Island, there is as website
available for you to check for their records at Ellis Island.org. This
site is administered by the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island
Foundation, who has done a credible job of posting immigration records
from the 1892-1924 era. As this historic island is
also a National Monument, the United States National Park Service also has it
featured on their website.

We visited this fantastic
site in 1992, and needless to say, I was overwhelmed by what was then restored.